After The Dust Has Settled
The much-lauded first debate has come and gone. As most everyone now knows, Romney won the debate. This was in part because President Obama basically didn’t show up with anything close to his “A” game. Progressives and liberals trying to salvage something out of this have been pointing out how many times Romney lied and changed positions to get that win. They point out that President Obama was right on the facts even thought Romney was better on style and soundbites.
That said, as I pointed out previously – debates aren’t about substance, they’re about style, and one liners and theater. And Romney simply showed up prepared to put on a good show and did. Republicans rejoiced that they might be back in this and be able to win the election afterall. Democratic reactions ranged from hand ringing to outright anger that Obama didn’t put it away in a year where the margin of victory is predicted to be so razor small.
The reason Romney had a good debate is because it was impossible for Obama to be completely prepared to debate a candidate who doesn’t himself know his position. Romney made positions and ideas up on the fly, with no specifics, and challenged Obama to retort against plans which are impossible to implement.
You can be sure that Obama’s debate prep team was sitting there in aghast horror as they prepared for a debate over policies which apparently weren’t relevant. It’s like preparing for a football game only to realize that you will be participating in a sepak takraw tournament. (Look it up, I promise it will intrigue you and the rules aren’t half as confounding as Romney’s policy proposals.)
Two days later the Unemployment Rate and Jobs Reports came out showing job growth this month as well as upward revisions for the past two months and, politically more important, the un-employment rate dropped to 7.8% as more people returned to work. Republicans jumped the crazy fence accusing Democrats and “those guys in Chicago” of cooking the numbers. Asides from playing the part in the bizarre right-wing trend to assume any fact that doesn’t agree with their opinion is part of a conspiracy theory, it is telling on two fronts.
First the Tea Party Republicans and Romney know they cannot win on substance and facts but they can win on theatrics. That’s why they brought in all the lies and “I don’t know what you’re talking about” responses to matters ranging from how a 5 trillion dollar tax cut for the rich is revenue neutral to how companies get tax breaks for sending jobs overseas.
I myself was laughing at Romneys “who are you going to believe – me or your lying eyes” defenses but the reality is they worked. The second point is that it proves that Obama’s policies which are based on real facts work. Yes, things could be better. But when opposition Republicans at the national level and in the states have made it clear that they are willing to do anything incluidng hamper or even derail the recovery in order to regain power this is in some ways proof that facts do beat theater – at least when it comes to econonics.
Unfortunately an election this close and an electorate this polarized doesn’t lend itself to facts winning over theater. When an entire side of the electorate is inclined to believe anything that doesn’t support their side is a lie and a communist-Nazi-socialist plot of the day there’s not a lot you can do. Remember what they say – don’t argue with a crazy person – people watching might not be able to tell the difference. Because of that it becomes all the more important that Biden and Obama come prepared to play the debate game, NOT give a policy briefing at news conference. And from saving Big Bird to pointing out how Bain Capitol pioneered off shoring because of its tax advantages, both the ad wars and the future debate responses need to make sure that the Etch a Sketch candidate doesn’t become the Etch a Sketch President.
The thing to take away from this debate is that this race isn’t over. This debate probably isn’t going to be looked back upon as the turning point of the election. They rarely are. What this debate did more than anything was galvanize the campaigns. Republicans are encouraged once again, thinking maybe all hope isn’t lost. What we need to do now on the Democratic side is prepare for the ground game in 30 days. You can be sure that President Obama’s campaign is preparing for the next debate and that we need to help out in any way we can on the local level. This is going to be a close one and every vote counts.
Reprinted from State Senator Curt Thompson's (D-5th) blog. Also, check the Senator out on Facebook and Twitter.
Karsten Torch
11:28 am on Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Obviously, I'm going to ignore your 'arguing with a crazy person' comment here and go ahead and do it anyway. We'll see how it goes....
One thing I did notice about the debate is that, whatever side you were on, you saw what you wanted to see. I saw a President who had nothing positive to fall back on. Even if the jobs numbers had come out before the debate, the only reason the number is below 8% at this point is because we had enough people that dropped out of the job pool that it brought down the unemployment number. What's really sad is that the only way this President, with his failed policies, could bring down the unemployment number AFTER 3 YEARS is to have enough people to just give up hope and stop looking for work. Not really an accomplishment I would run on.
I would also debate about whether Romney lied, or just didn't tell what those on the left wanted to hear. It's possible that those on the President's side just thought they knew what Romney's stance was on certain issues, and they assumed incorrectly. I've never heard Romney say he wanted to cut taxes for the rich across the board. I've heard him say he wanted to make changes, yes, but everybody just assumed he meant tax breaks for the rich. Even me, honestly. Cutting the rate and cutting deductions makes sense - pretty easy to be revenue neutral that way. Especially with any resulting increase in economic activity...
Phil Lynson
11:55 am on Wednesday, October 10, 2012
The campaign isn't necessarily about substance, facts, and policies. It is about swaying the uninformed/undecided voters to turn off Real Housewives of the Jersey Shore for a couple of hours and cast a ballot in your favor.
A. President Obama neglects to meet with foreign leaders during the UN General Assembly and instead goes on The View. Why? Because going on the View has a greater chance of swaying uninformed voters.
B. Candidate Romney states during the debate that his plan would cover individuals with preexisting conditions. His advisers "walk back" that claim in the spin room immediately after the debate. Why? Because uninformed voters who bothered to tune into the debate aren't going to bother to pay attention to the after-party spin.
C. Candidate Romney tells the Des Moines Register "there is no legislation with regards to abortion that I'm familiar with that would become part of my agenda" after which his spokeswoman tells the National Review ""Governor Romney would of course support legislation aimed at providing greater protections for life." Why? Because undecideds who read the Des Moines Register might feel better about a more moderate Romney while more conservative National Review readers want a more conservative Romney.
Face it. Now is the time to make stuff up, pander to the undecideds, say anything to close the deal and get elected. Romney is a businessman. He gets it. Obama needs get it as well if he likes his current job.
Stan
3:17 pm on Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Good balanced article on the debate and good comments so far. Surprised there aren't the usual comments that (because he isn't biased) the author is a communist or the like.
Amy L
4:07 pm on Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Just wait Stan. Sooner or later Cynthia Montgomery will be here to give us Glen Beck's perspective on things.
R++ - One of the famous "Dacula Crew"
12:03 am on Thursday, October 11, 2012
Token communist charge made to fulfill expectations (Smiles)
Stirling Cargill
5:28 pm on Wednesday, October 10, 2012
This election isn't about the issues it's about the future of this country. Romney will honor the nation's founders by following the Constitution and maintaining a democratic republic. Obama will continue to play fast and loose with the Constitution and move the country closer to being a socialist union. When Obama was campaigning he made a big point about his desire to redistribute wealth and that's what he has tried to do since he's been in office. It's really worse than that because he's really redistributing INCOME. Think your safe if you're middle class? Guess again.
Amy L
6:01 pm on Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Redistribution of wealth isn't happening, it already happened. If you haven't seen this, please look it over and educate yourself. The charts provided are an excellent, easy to follow resource for explaining the underlying problems with our current economy and taxes.
http://www.businessinsider.com/who-pays-taxes-2012-8?op=1
The takeaway, if you refuse to read is that yes, rich people pay most of the taxes in this country. But, they only do so because wages for the rest of us haven't increased in 50 years. 96% of the income growth over the past 30 years has gone to the top 10%. And it is not because companies are doing poorly. Corporate profits as a percentage of the economy are at an all time high while wages are at all time lows.
Amy L
6:43 pm on Wednesday, October 10, 2012
The end result of 50 years of wage stagnation for middle and lower class people is that now the top 5% control 70% of the wealth of this country. Yet, they "only" pay 50% of the taxes. So in reality, when you take income distribution into account, the top 5% UNDERPAY their share of taxes EVEN THOUGH they already pay half the taxes.
Rex Smithers
7:11 pm on Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Move to Chicago. You opinion isn't wanted and your vote will never count here.
Take a vest. You'll need it with democrats in charge of public safety. Bye
Amy L
8:09 pm on Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Hi Rex!
Thanks for informing me that I am no longer welcome in the state I was born and raised in. I didn't know Georgia had an unwelcoming committee, much less that you were a member.
As for opinions, anyone reading comments on this site can judge for themselves the relative strength of the arguments presented. I enjoy contrasting my posts with those of people like Rex. So Rex, even though you don't appreciate our opinions, we appreciate yours. We really do. :)
Roger Long
8:38 pm on Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Well David, maybe the folks you speak of are the ones that built the roads and bridges that Obama speaks of before the 100 hour/week working business owners are busy not building their businesses. Maybe that was their fair share payment. ???
Or maybe they just deserve a refund check handout because they aren't "Millionaires and Billionaires".
Amy L
8:57 pm on Wednesday, October 10, 2012
The bottom 50% of the country make about 15% of the income. They pay 2% of the federal income taxes. BUT, they typically pay a far greater share of the PAYROLL taxes. The top 5% and especially the top 1% pay relatively little payroll tax because their income comes in different ways. They pay a far greater share of capital gains and corporate taxes.
All this means that the group getting squeezed both by wage stagnation and a greater burden of taxes is the middle and upper middle class. We do need tax reform. Most likely lower rates with fewer deductions applied more evenly across the income brackets. Both Romney and Obama say they are willing to do this. The sticking point is do we, at the end of the day, increase federal revenues, or do we keep going with the "starve the beast" philosophy. Our infrastructure is crumbling, our educational system is falling behind the rest of the world, and an increasing number of Americans are living in abject poverty or prison. We democrats believe that we are in this mess because we haven't spent enough to invest in the country. Tax rates might be high, but actual revenue collected hasn't been lower since 1950. We need to make the investments in research, schools, roads, power grids, high speed internet, mass transit, and job training that will make us prosperous again.
Amy L
9:40 pm on Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Business does play a large role in research and development, but you are wrong to say that government has no role at all. Think of all the ways inventions coming out of just DARPA and NASA have changed our lives. That doesn't even count all the ways that government helps companies with great ideas become the next Google by being there to buy their product when they are starting out. Since you will bring up Solyndra, I will preempt you and do it first. Yes, Solyndra went bankrupt after taking taxpayer money, but in my opinion it is because we aren't spending enough in this area. China is subsidizing their fledgeling solar industry MUCH more heavily than we are. So is Germany. We will not be able to compete in this area without heavy government support. Do you think that in a global marketplace American businesses can compete against companies whose governments heavily subsidize their products? Or do you think that since we are unwilling to subsidize solar to the degree other governments are that we should abandon that industry?
R++ - One of the famous "Dacula Crew"
11:56 pm on Wednesday, October 10, 2012
"Two days later the Unemployment Rate and Jobs Reports came out showing job growth this month as well as upward revisions for the past two months and, politically more important, the UN-employment rate dropped to 7.8% as more people returned to work."
Funny a couple of months ago the jobs numbers were over-reported by 30 to 50 percent and not a peep about that during THIS release in light of the previous whiff? Since its driven by unemployment participants, as these folks exhaust their time did they just LEAVE the labor force or transfer to welfare?
Smoke and mirrors doesn't even do this justice and may just be an insult to hard working mirrors everywhere.
Otis The Town Drunk
12:52 am on Thursday, October 11, 2012
R, you are spot on. I think we (the intelligent and rational) work ourselves up over stupidity like this because we care and understand the corruption in government. Bureaucracies in government that fear unemployment for themselves if the truth is realized by the majority. Our children are going to pay for the stupidity of today's complacent, Entertainment Tonight fans.
Keep fighting the good fight for the sake of our youth.
Karsten Torch
2:28 pm on Thursday, October 11, 2012
Amy, I applaud your efforts, and the efforst of every other liberal out there for your desire to try to take care of our unable. However, I, like many of my Conservative brethren, think that your approach is unrealistic and, quite frankly, detrimental.
First, regarding innovations - the US leads the world in the area of medical innovations. We are the world leader in advanced technology, and why we are the country you want to be in should you get sick - we have the highest survival rate for terminal diseases in the world. And this is not because we subsidize our medical community.
Other, we can't spend ourselves into prosperity. Japan tried this, and failed miserably. Our government produces nothing it doesn't first take from another source, and it doesn't do this very efficiently. Why would it be better to take money from people that earn it and spend it for them? And eat up most of it in administrative costs?
This doesn't even mention the idea that doing for people encourages them not to do for themselves. There's a story that's going around about the DNR tells people not to feed bears because they will become dependant on people for that food and dangerous, yet we're increasing people all the time on the government dole, and that the ideas are related. And I tend to agree with the sentiment. As can be seen in the riots in Greece....
Karsten Torch
2:31 pm on Thursday, October 11, 2012
people are likely to become comfortable with what is provided for them, to the extent they will expect it, not do anything to change what they receive, and become violent when it is taken away. I truly believe the war against poverty is directly responsible for the rampant poverty in this country, and the reason for our large inequality of incomes.